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“Any time you are at this stage in a knock-out game, no matter what your season has been like so far or what happened in the last few years, you are going to be gunning for it because a win here takes you into the last four.

“We are certainly aware of how great it is to get to a final, so we’ll be ready to go.”

Both teams head into the weekend on the back of a defeat – Riders edged 84-82 by Glasgow at home, while the Lions surrendered a 20-point lead to lose 78-71 at Cheshire last Sunday.

Despite a first loss of the campaign, the latter stages of the week have been no different from the previous weeks for Riders, although there were some in the first few days.

“Early on in the week, the video session was important for us,” said Paternostro.

Shane Walker against Glasgow Rocks

“You always want to, when you get beat, see the corrections you need to make. We’ll be an improved team because of the loss last week.”

The Lions have assembled a talented squad and this was undoubtedly the tie of the round when it came out of the hat, pitching two potential winners head to head.

The signing of GB international Justin Robinson caught the eye for the Lions in the summer and, having played in some of the best leagues in Europe during his career, he has made a huge impact in the BBL in the first few weeks.

Paternostro said: “When you look at London, they have a lot of depth, different guys have stepped up in every game, but Robinson is certainly I guy who makes them tick in the backcourt.